James B McConville

Talewinds James B McConville

Talewinds combines author James B. McConville's love of aviation history and technology with his real-life interactions with a diverse group of fliers, many of whom he met while working as an engineer or while pursuing his passion for airplanes.


A collection of essays told mostly from memory, Talewinds retells the often exciting experiences of these pilots who flew stunt planes, fighters, bombers, patrol aircraft, choppers, and trainers--often in life-and-death circumstances.

About the Author


From a young age, James B. McConville took an avid interest in aviation history and technology. He received his Bachelors in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Virginia in 1966 and his Masters in Foreign Language Education from the University of Georgia in 1973. He is fluent in German with a more modest capability in Russian. Between the years 1960 and 1996, he amassed about 80 flight hours, roughly half of which was solo time in single-engined, general aviation aircraft.


To date, McConville has over 50 years of engineering experience, ranging across multiple fields. He has worked on numerous aerospace projects involving aircraft, missiles, and satellites. Though currently retired, he is contracted part-time by MSC Software, Inc., and was granted "Technical Fellow" status by them in 2014. McConville also authored a modest introductory engineering text on multi-body dynamics, published in 2015. He has been a member of the Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio, since 1970.